I cried a little. (that's a lie, I cried a lot) . this was beautifully written and tug at my heart strings. as a psychology students I think you explain the effects of trauma amazingly and common coping method. and reading something in McKay's pov was refreshing. thank you

Coloring books allow the mind to drift, if your unsettled, coloring is a great way of letting go without really letting go.

I love it good job

This was awesome, the more complicated the life, the simple pleasures are the ones most enjoyed, and it makes sense that the worst of any trauma would be helped by the simplest distractions, no negative associations.

This just made me cry in the best possible way. Absolutely amazing writing, thank you for sharing it xx

thank you! enjoyed reading very much!

I know a person who colored in a shrinks waiting room with other patients doing their best not to notice. I was in a shrinks office! So color! Did me good.

Seems adult coloring books are following in Shepards Footsteps.

Wonderful story I have to read in one setting.

Wow this is so good, bravo!

Wow... This was amazing, thank you so much for writing this. :)

The search filter I applied brought this story up near the top of the list...and I'm so glad it did. Both the title and the summary intrigued me, the first line grabbed my interest further, and then I just let myself fall into the tale.

I really enjoyed the way you used Rodney in this story; his first-person POV gave things a different...almost raw...twist as he became the readers' eyes and ears. Perhaps because Rodney's perceived hypochondria and hyper awareness of his own health were such staple gags in canon, his cataloging of John's injuries and condition when they first found him became even more chilling for me. The other thing I found notable about this being told from Rodney's perspective was that it made his own growth and understanding seem very real. His own internal struggles and unflinching honesty regarding his shortcomings made this as much a character study of Rodney as it did of John.

Because Rodney is a scientist, his observations tended, for the most part, to be almost clinical. When he *did* allow emotion to color the things he was witnessing, it created such amazing poignancy that I had to keep dashing the tears from my eyes. Seeing John so broken, especially when he admitted how much the torture had hurt (this is Sheppard, who treats gunshots like annoying paper cuts, after all), broke me as well.

John's attachment to the coloring book was, for me, a strange juxtaposition of endearingly sweet (of the non-saccharine variety) and deeply disturbing, for many of the same reasons Rodney cited. The resolution, with Rodney understanding what John couldn't put into words himself, brought on a fresh spate of tears, as it seemed to signify how the trust in this friendship is far from being one-sided.

Clicking on your profile I was (and am) thrilled to discover that you've posted so many SGA stories. This piece really touched my heart, and I look forward to reading more of your work.

Except for one or two flaws that i stumbled across (well, it is fiction after all but still I got caught by the way too fast healing of a broken collar bone), I was literally inhaling the story. I read it like 4 or 5 times within 24 hours.
The author worked amazingly well into the characters, brought in focus the friendship between Sheppard and McKay and made the reader (me) empathise with all characters.
Thanks for the short but great story! Hope to find more written by this author.

Amazing. Thanks a lot.

Absolutely perfect. After my love for Atlantis being rekindled, this was an amazing find.

Fucking Amasing. Brilliant. Bloody Brilliant. You're up tehre with Atlas, really you are.

lifelong.

O_O

OMGGGGG XDDDD thats amazing